Persona
A Persona is a unique entity contained within the Nephilim. Few Nephilim throughout the ages have reached the level in which they can invoke their Persona, and those that do possess incredible power. Overview The Persona is the manifestation of the personality and ability of a Nephilim. The process of unlocking a Nephilim's Persona ability differs drastically from person to person, but a common trait is the concept of self-actualization; achieving a strong drive or sense of purpose. If done correctly, the Nephilim will gain the manifestation of their inner selves in the form of a Persona, which can be invoked and used in combat. Commonly, when invoking their Persona, a Persona user's eyes flash in a color specific to their Persona, before their own energy begins to surround them in a circle, the nature of which can vary from user to user, before the user's Persona appears. Personas are also known to possess voices, though only the user can hear it. The voice of a Persona is the exact same as the user's own voice. Even if the user does not possess the ability to speak, the Persona will speak in what their voice would be. A Persona usually only speaks when it calls out to a Nephilim, awakening shortly before being invoked for the first time. Appearance Personas have no fixed appearance, but are all known to be humanoid at the very least, though that is where similarities between Personas ends. The outward appearance of each Persona is entirely unique and dependent on the user, meaning no two Personas are ever the same, though certain similarities can occur, such as with a familial bond, or shared abilities. Abilities As Personas are completely dependent on the Nephilim, the abilities and forms of Personas can differ just as drastically as the personalities of people. Generally, though, a Persona exhibits power beyond what the Nephilim had beforehand, being the manifestation of the true power of the Nephilim. The traits of a Persona are entirely dependent on the Nephilim's own traits, and as such will possess powers that are most closely related to the Nephilim's personality and abilities. Negative Effects Personas, despite their incredible power and ability, are not completely infallible. As they are dependent on the user, they are technically just as strong and weak as they are, meaning that they can in fact be destroyed. Additionally, the user experiences all feeling that the Persona does, including pain, which, if the user themselves is fighting alongside the Persona, can redouble on the user and can cause an immense amount of pain at once, impeding the user's ability to both fight and sustain their Persona, though this is mitigated somewhat by the fact that Nephilim are naturally extremely tolerant to pain and damage. If a Persona is destroyed, it causes extreme mental stress on the user, in addition to the physical pain felt by the Persona. In this case, the user can invoke the Persona again, but at an increased mental and power cost, which can drain away at the user through multiple invocations, though with training and mental fortitude, these weaknesses can be mitigated, though not entirely eliminated. In addition, simply having the Persona active can drain away at the user's mental health and power. Though Personas can technically be used indefinitely, as the power from the world they draw on is limitless for all intents and purposes, if the user's ability to draw from a world is cut off or hampered in any way, such as taking continuous damage during a sustained fight, or having their Persona destroyed multiple times, they will have to rely on their own power to sustain the Persona partially, if not completely, which will drain away at their power and ability. If completely drained and unable to invoke their Persona again, a Nephilim is extremely vulnerable. In a nutshell, the Persona ability is a Nephilim's greatest power, but at the same time can be their ultimate weakness, if conditions are met. During the Nephilim Purge, this was oftentimes exploited by Angels, Demons, and Humans, in order to bring a Nephilim down, though certain Nephilim knew better and could counteract their weaknesses, something Tyrael was able to accomplish. Dual Personas Over the entire history of the Nephilim, there have been a recorded five accounts of a Nephilim being able to utilize two Personas, being able to switch between the two or even use both simultaneously. This gives the Nephilim in question an exponential increase in combat ability, though using both Personas at the same time takes much more of a toll on the user, and generally cannot be sustained for as long as a single Persona. The most well known Nephilim able to use Dual Personas is Tyrael, allowing her to defeat Samael at the time of the Nephilim Purge. Known Personas 'Uriel - '''The Persona of Michael Christen. Uriel uses the powers of Light and has incredible defensive capability. While it's offense is lacking compared to Mephisto, it is still more than enough to match even the most powerful Demons. 'Mephisto - 'The Persona of Amanda Hathaway. Mephisto possesses a higher level of raw power than Uriel, but lacks the extreme defense of its Angel counterpart. Higher level Angels can still hold their own against Mephisto, but not for very long, as even with the lower defensive capabilities of Mephisto, it is still incredibly difficult to bring down. 'Erebus -''' The Persona of the first Void Avatar, Cyratel. Erebus was a pure manifestation of Void, and held complete power over it, allowing the Cyratel to infect Creation with Void. Cyratel was eventually defeated, but his Persona was only sealed away within Void, implying that it still exists somewhere within nothingness. '''Alphus and Omegus - '''Dual Personas of Tyrael. Alphus was her primary Persona, being deadly in all forms of soulcraft, while Omegus was the manifestation of her experience with Void, brought about by her brother's influence. Category:Ishimura Elite Category:EWO Terminology